Craniosacral therapy Improves Pain, QOL, and Mood in FM

Phoenix Rising Founder

My recollection is that Dr. Lapp found that craniosacral therapy was helpful in ME/CFS. He also found that ME/CFS patients tended to have very tense upper bodies and exhibited shallow breathing patterns.

Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2009 Sep 3. [Epub ahead of print]
Influence of Craniosacral Therapy on Anxiety, Depression and Quality of Life in Patients with Fibromyalgia.

The objective of this study was to analyze the repercussions of craniosacral therapy on depression, anxiety and quality of life in fibromyalgia patients with painful symptoms. An experimental, double-blind longitudinal clinical trial design was undertaken. Eighty-four patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia were randomly assigned to an intervention group (craniosacral therapy) or placebo group (simulated treatment with disconnected ultrasound). The treatment period was 25 weeks.

Anxiety, pain, sleep quality, depression and quality of life were determined at baseline and at 10 min, 6 months and 1-year post-treatment. State anxiety and trait anxiety, pain, quality of life and Pittsburgh sleep quality index were significantly higher in the intervention versus placebo group after the treatment period and at the 6-month follow-up.

Once the treatment stopped, though, many of the improvements disappeared - the treatment is hitting the symptoms but not obviously the cause. Gotta keep doing this treatment for it to continue working

However, at the 1-year follow-up, the groups only differed in the Pittsburgh sleep quality index. Approaching fibromyalgia by means of craniosacral therapy contributes to improving anxiety and quality of life levels in these patients.

Senior Member

Hi Cort,
I had 3 sessions of cranial-sacral therapy just for general Fibro pain and it had an interesting side-effect. It cured my long-standing TMJ. I threw out my annoying night splint and have not had even a hint of TMJ since then, and that was over a decade ago. There was no need for follow up sessions.